Polish researchers are carrying out documentation work at a medieval ducal tower containing the only surviving in situ medieval wall paintings in the world depicting scenes from the legend of Lancelot du Lac.
The 14th-century residential tower in Siedlęcin, Lower Silesia is considered a valuable monument of medieval secular architecture and one of the most valuable monuments in Lower Silesia.
It is also one of the best-preserved structures of its kind in Poland.
The project is led by Prof. Radosław Palonka from the Jagiellonian University Institute of Archaeology as part of “Academic and Digital Approaches to Cultural Heritage Preservation,” in cooperation with the Association “Ducal Tower in Siedlęcin.”
The team is digitally recording the paintings, creating a detailed architectural inventory and developing a 3D model of the tower that will present both its current condition and reconstructions of earlier construction phases. Missing features will be digitally recreated based on archival sources and preserved traces.
“This work serves not only to record the current state of the paintings and tower, but also to enhance the visibility of individual fragments through specialised software analysis, often revealing details invisible to the naked eye or even advanced photography,” Palonka said. “I wanted to highlight the significance of this monument to a wider audience and emphasise the Jagiellonian University’s role in researching such an important and valuable site.”
The research continues investigations begun in 2008 by archaeologist Przemysław Nocuń. His team uncovered remains of the original defensive perimeter, a stone bridge, sections of the moat, a 15th-century gate tower, a late-medieval manor house and a 17th-century kitchen. They also studied the oldest surviving wooden ceilings in Poland.
“Dendrochronological analysis provided fascinating insights. We identified not only the years but even the seasons when the trees used in construction were felled. The wood for the ceiling above the ground floor was cut in spring and summer of 1313, for the first floor – between 1313 and 1314, for the second floor – in spring 1314, and for the third floor – between 1314 and 1315. Remarkably, in one ceiling’s infill, we found reused ladders and scaffolding elements made from wood felled in late 1312 and 1313. There is no other building in Europe where the construction process has been so precisely reconstructed,” Nocuń said.
The tower, likely commissioned by Henry I, Duke of Jawor, was built on a rectangular plan with six levels, including a defensive walkway.
Its most distinctive feature remains the set of polychromes from 1320–1330, painted by artists from the Swiss-German border region, with a central depiction of Saint Christopher and unique scenes from the life of Lancelot du Lac. (PAP)
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